LILLE, FRANCE – The boys’ medley relay won gold, set a World Youth Record and added the sixteenth medal to the U.S. haul at the 2011 IAAF World Championships on the last day of the July 6 – 10 competition in Lille, France.
Team USA dominated both the medal and points tables. With six gold, four silver and six bronze, the U.S. tied the best-ever medal count set at the 2009 World Youth Championships with sixteen total medals. Team USA won the placing table with 159 points and Kenya was second with 107 points.
The boys’ medley relay started off with a quick 100m leg by Ronald Darby (Oxon Hill, Md.) who handed off to Aldrich Bailey (Arlington, Texas) for the 200m leg to set the U.S. in winning position. Najee Glass (Fords, N.J.) got the baton at the start of the 300m with only a narrow lead over Japan and increased it to at least one meter before the next exchange. Arman Hall (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) anchored the 400m leg and turned over a new gear on the last 200m to pull further away from the Japanese. Hall brought the team home in a World Youth Record time of 1:49.47.
The girls’ medley relay also medaled with a combined time of 2:03.92 to take second place. Jennifer Madu (Murphy, Texas) ran the 100m leg to hand the stick to Bealoved Brown (Desoto, Texas) who maintained the U.S.’s second place position over the 200m leg. Kendall Baisden (Franklin, Mich.) ran the 300m leg and handed off to Robin Reynolds (Miami, Fla.) to complete the effort. However, at the top of the curve, Reynolds stumbled when a cameraman inadvertently stepped onto the track. Reynolds was quick to recover her form and anchor the team to a silver medal.
Amy Weissenbach (Los Angeles, Calif.) and Ajee’ Wilson (Neptune, N.J.) ran side-by-side for the first lap of the girls’ 800m. With 200m left to go in the girls’ 800m, Wilson changed gears and ran to the lead with four athletes chasing close behind. Wilson kicked to the finish and opened a half second gap over the rest of the field to win the world championship title and finish in a personal best time of 2:02.64. Meanwhile, Weissenbach found herself fighting in a pack of three athletes, all trying to claim podium positions. Weissenbach finished just shy of the podium as she sprinted and collapsed on the line in fourth place in 2:03.59.
Jacob Blankenship (Buckeyelake, Ohio) won bronze in the boys’ pole vault. Blankenship sailed through his first attempts and quickly found himself in first place. However, after clearing 5.15m/16-10.75 he was unable to clear the next increase of the bar to 5.20m/17-0.75. While two other competitors advanced in competition, Blankenship was happy to medal in his first international competition.
Ronald Darby (Oxon Hill, Md.) won a bronze medal in the boys’ 200m. Darby had the quickest start of the field and ran to first through the curve. He held his pace for third as others moved up on the straightaway. Darby crossed the line in 21.08 to secure his first medal of the world championships. Aldrich Bailey (Arlington, Texas) ran 21.36 to finish sixth.
Maddie Meyers (Seattle, Wash.) and Brianna Nerud (Glen Head, N.Y.) ran two very different races in the girls’ 2,000m steeplechase, but they finished with nearly identical marks. Meyers ran strong from the gun and ran side-by-side with a Moroccan athlete as both were challenging for fourth. On the last lap, Meyers was unable to answer as two competitors surged ahead. Meyers crossed the line in a personal best time of 6:29.20. Meanwhile, Nerud ran most of the race in ninth place, but began to quicken her pace on the last two laps and move up to seventh. Nerud kicked down the final 100m to finish less than half a second behind Meyers. Nerud crossed the line in seventh place in 6:29.56, a personal best by nine seconds.
In the boys’ 1500m final, Jacob Burcham (Barboursville, W.V.) tucked in to the chase pack and held on through the first three laps. But on the final 400m, Burcham began to kick and moved to the front of the pack. While Burcham sprinted towards the finish, he was unable to hold off a lean from James McMurry of Great Britain. Burcham took seventh to finish in a personal best of 3:46.55 to better his PR that was just set in the semifinals. During the meet, Burcham lowered his PR by a stunning eight seconds.
In the girls’ 200m final, Bealoved Brown (Desoto, Texas) was unable to duplicate the strong race she had in semifinals where she ran a personal best of 23.80. Bealoved finished in eighth place in 24.08.
Quotes
Maddie Meyers – Girls’ Steeplechase
“I tried to hang in there, but my legs felt like they couldn’t go. It’s a little disappointing, but I’m happy. I had two goals coming in, one to make finals, and two to PR, so I’m happy I was able to get both.”
Brianna Nerud – Girls’ Steeplechase
“I was really determined not to let my nerves get to me and not worry about anything and just run. I stayed in back of pack until the second half of the race, then just went.”
Ajee’ Wilson – Girls’ 800m
“I’m feeling so good and very happy. I just tried to stay relaxed and new my time would come. I’m glad my kick was enough to hold off the other girls. It is amazing, and I can only thank God.”
Amy Weissenbach – Girls’ 800m
“I was a little disappointed, but I can’t be mad at myself. In the last 200 and 100, I gave it all I had. I don’t have any regrets about this race, and I did my best. But it is a little disappointing that it wasn’t there today. I’ll look to next you to try to PR.”
Ronald Darby – Boys’ 200m
“I wish I would have done better. I placed and I’ve had fun running out here. To help out the U.S. medal count – I’m happy.”
Jacob Burcham – Boys’ 1500m
“I just tried to stay in the pack and kick at the end. I had been waiting to kick for the whole race. My only plan was to go out and race them. Seventh is great – I’m happy with it!
Jacob Blankenship – Boys’ Pole Vault
“ It went pretty well. I could have probably made a few adjustments on the last few jumps, but I just went with what I knew. I was still excited to get third place.”
Kendall Baisden – Girls’ Medley Relay
“I was just trying to get us in a good position. It feels good to bring a medal home on my first international trip.”
Robin Reynolds – Girls’ Medley Relay
“The race was going by so quick, the cameraman was just an obstacle in my path. It threw me off a little, but I got right back.”
Arman Hall - Boys’ Medley Relay
“I’m tired. I’ve done a lot. But I’m happy we did what we wanted. We’re all happy right now!”
Najee Glass – Boys’ Medley Relay
“We knew we were going to win it if we were focused and had clean handoffs.”
For complete results, visit the event page at www.usatf.org
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track & field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, the World's #1 Track & Field Team, the most-watched events at the Olympics, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport, and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States: www.usatf.org.
DAY FOUR
Hailey hurdles to gold at World Youth Champs
LILLE, FRANCE – Nnenya Hailey won gold in the girls’ 400m hurdles, while Justin Fondren and Shelbi Vaughn claimed bronze in the high jump and discus on day four of the 2011 IAAF World Youth Championships in Lille, France.
Team USA maintains the top spot on the medal table with four gold, three silver and four bronze medals, for a total of 11 medals. Kenya is the closest nation, with six total medals.
In the girls’ 400m hurdle finals, Hailey (Marietta, Ga.) had a lead of several meters as she ran down the home stretch. On the final hurdle, Hailey clipped her foot but was able to remain upright and still hold on to the lead to cross the line in first. Hailey won in a world leading youth time and personal best of 57.93.
In the boys’ high jump competition, Justin Fondren (Oxford, Miss.) was one of three competitors to clear 2.13m/6-11.75; however, none were able to clear the next height of 2.16m. Fondren had two misses at the 2.13m/7-1 height, and was awarded the bronze medal as the tie was broken on missed attempts.
Shelbi Vaughn (Mansfield, Texas) won bronze in the girls’ discus on her first throw of the day. Vaughn’s winning throw came on her first attempt when she sent the disc sailing 52.58m/172-6. In total, Vaughn had three throws beyond the 50 meter mark.
Tyler Sorensen (San Diego, Calif.) walked a smart race as he started out towards the back of the field and worked his way up on each consecutive lap of the boys’ 10,000m racewalk. By the halfway mark, Sorensen found himself in eighth place. From there he passed two more competitors to cross the line in sixth. However, in a dramatic turn of events, the first place athlete was disqualified after crossing the line, and Sorensen moved to fifth place. Sorensen finished in a personal best time of 41:23.14, set a new American Junior record and was faster than the previous meet record by 12 seconds.
The girls’ 1500m final went out in a blazing 2:12 through 800m, and the U.S. girls hung on in the middle of the pack to ride the effort to personal best times. Cami Chapus (Costa Mesa, Calif.) unleashed a strong kick to pass one of the Kenyan athletes at the line and cross the finish line in 4:17.12 and take fifth place. Hannah Meier (Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich.) ran only a stride behind Chapus through most of the race, and was not far behind in ninth place in 4:20.62.
In the girls’ heptathlon, Kendell Williams (Marietta, Ga.) started the day with a long jump of 5.81m/19-0.75 to bring her five event total to 4,081 points for sixth place. Williams faltered a bit in the javelin with a toss of 19.98 meters/65-6 , which dropped her to 11th place. In the final discipline of the heptathlon, Williams ran the 800m in personal best time of 2:26.99, and maintained her overall position of 11th place. Williams ended the competition with 5,101 points.
Sydney White (Kernersville, N.C.) cleared the 13-foot mark for the third time in her career and finished her first international competition in eighth place. White cleared three increases of the bar, with her final clearance coming at 4.00/13-1.5.
Both the girls’ and boys’ relay teams advanced to Sunday’s final. The medley relay includes 100, 200, 300 and 400m legs. The girls’ team of Jennifer Madu, Myasia Jacobs, Kendall Baisden and Robin Reynolds won the third heat in 2:09.39 with a victory over Romania by one second. In the boys’ relay, the team of Cameron Burrell, Aldrich Bailey, Arman Hall and Najee Glass turned in the fastest time of the day to win the first heat in 1:51.53.
In other qualifying rounds, all three American athletes in the 200m semifinals advanced to the finals on Sunday. Bealoved Brown (Desoto, Texas) ran a personal best time of 23.80 in the girls race to finish fourth, but advance with her fast time. Ronald Darby (Oxon Hill, Md.) ran 21.08 to take second in his heat of the boys’ race, while Aldrich Bailey (Arlington, Texas) won his heat in a personal best of 21.29.
The final day of competition will be webcast live by Universal Sports from 8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. ET. The webcast can be viewed at www.UniversalSports.com.
Quotes
Tyler Sorensen – Boys’ 10,000m Racewalk
“I was faster than the meet record in fifth place, any other year I would have gotten gold, and here I got 5th. The junior record is all I thought about for the second 5k. I’m used to international competition now, and I was mentally into it this time. I smiled at my parents with 400m to go and then I kicked.”
Shelbi Vaughn – Girls’ Discus
“I was a little shaky at first. I was expecting first, but two girls passed me. I had one good throw, my first was the best of the day.”
Kendell Williams – Girls’ Heptathlon
“I knew I wasn’ going to be on the podium, but I wanted to finish with a strong run. The performances didn’t go the way I wanted, but you have to move on.”
Nnenya Hailey – Girls’ 400m Hurdles
“I’m super tired. I had a tummy ache this morning, and I’m just glad it is over. I’m happy to get add a gold medal to our count and help the team.”
Justin Fondren – Boys’ High Jump
“I hate losing on misses, but it happens. I wish I had one more attempt. I didn’t have enough speed going into the jump. I need to go back home and work on my technique. It feels great to medal – I came out here to help the team win, and I accomplished something.”
Hannah Meier – Girls’ 1500m
“Wow, that was fast! These girls pushed me to a best time. I’m gald I got a PR. I’m also glad for my teammate Cami, she did great.”
Cami Chapus – Girls’ 1500m
“That was fun. I’m just really happy I stuck to my race plan. I ended on a good note finishing strong was my final goal. I can’t believe it is over. I was excited to leave everything on the track today. I was actually tearing up before the race, not because of nerve, but excitement to be here with the top 12 girls in the world."
Sydney White – Girls’ Pole Vault
“I was happy to PR. It was different to be vaulting near the big crowd. It helped me a lot to hear my teammates while I was down there. It is always good to be around girls vaulting higher than you, it helped me to PR."
About USA Track & Field
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track & field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, the World's #1 Track & Field Team, the most-watched events at the Olympics, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport, and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States: www.usatf.org.
DAY THREE
Hall wins 400m gold at World Youth Championships
LILLE, FRANCE – Arman Hall won the boys’ 400m in convincing fashion in a time of 46.01 to win gold and further secured Team USA’s spot atop the medal count on day three of the 2011 IAAF World Youth Championships.
At the end of day three, the U.S. leads the medal count with three gold, three silver and two bronze, for a total of eight medals. Jamaica and Kenya have five medals apiece while China has four.
Afternoon Session
In the boys’ 400m final Arman Hall (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) started strong and continued to push the effort as he made his way around the track. He stormed down the homestretch pulling away from the rest of the field to win by more than half a second in 46.01. Hall’s gold medal performance also gives him the fastest time in the world by a youth this year.
Unfortunately, the U.S. girls’ were unable to replicate Hall’s performance. Robin Reynolds (Miami, Fla.) was in good position on the final stretch battling with Shaunae Miller of the Bahamas. However, Reynolds appeared to hit a wall three meters before the finish line, and as her form broke down she faded to fourth. Reynolds’ effort was good enough for a season best performance of 52.72. Kendall Baisden (Franklin, Tenn.) finished sixth in 53.01.
The girls’ 800m final is shaping up to be a battle between the U.S. and the U.K. In the second heat of the semifinal, Katie Snowden of Great Britain and Amy Weissenbach (Los Angeles, Calif.) ran shoulder to shoulder to the finish, with Weissenbach taking second in 2:05.84 to advance to the final. In the third heat Ajee Wilson (Neptune, NJ) narrowly beat Jessica Judd of Great Britain to advance in a personal best time of 2:03.17.
In the qualification for the discus finals, Shelbi Vaughn (Mansfield, Texas) launched her first throw 53.78m/176-5. Her throw was a personal best, automatically qualified her for the finals and was better than the rest of the field by exactly one meter. Chamaya Turner (Garden Ridge, Texas) was unable to get a legal mark during her three attempts.
In the boys’ 100m hurdle finals, Todd Gurley (Tarboro, N.C.) was unable to advance after tripping on the final hurdle. While he remained upright, he fell back to sixth place with a finish time of 14.10.
In the girls’ heptathlon, Kendell Williams ran the 200m in 25.07 and threw a personal best of 9.78m/32-1 in the shot put. At the end of the first day for the heptathlon, Williams sits in fourth place with 3289 points.
Morning Session
In the boys’ pole vault qualification, Jacob Blankenship (Buckeyelake, Ohio) easily advanced to the finals. Blankenship successfully cleared each height on his first attempts up to 4.80m/15-9.
In the first round of the girls’ 2,000m steeplechase, both Brianna Nerud (Glen Head, N.Y.) and Madeleine Meyers (Seattle, Wash.) advanced to the finals. Nerud ran in the first heat that went out at a quick pace and ran in a small chase pack fighting for the third and fourth place automatic qualifying spots. While Nerud finished sixth, her time of 6:38.80 was fast enough to send her to the finals. In the second heat, Madie Meyers moved to the front with the athletes from Kenya and Ethiopia, and held the second place spot throughout most of the race. Meyers finished in 6:34.80 to take second and automatically advance to the finals.
In the first round of the girls’ 200m, Bealoved Brown (Desoto, Texas) won her heat in 24.30 to advance to finals. The boys followed Brown’s example and both won their heats in the 200m as well. Aldrich Bailey clocked 21.46 and Rondald Darby (Oxon Hill, Md.) won his heat in 21.50.
Kendell Williams (Marrietta, Ga.) took the lead in the first event of the girls’ heptathlon. In her best event, the 100m hurdles, Williams ran the fastest time of the day in 13.74. After clearing 1.72m/5-7.75 in the high jump, Williams finished the morning session in fourth place overall with 1894 points.
Quotes
Arman Hall – Boys’ 400m
“I wanted to run even faster, but I PR’d and I’m happy I won – what else could I ask for! All I saw was the finish line and I wanted to get there first. I worked hard for this and God got me here, he is great!”
Ajee Wilson – Girls’ 800m
“I thought the first lap was fast, but I didn’t want to panick. I just stayed up there and relaxed, then with 200m to go, I stepped it up. I could feel her [Jessica Judd] come up on me on the straight, and I just powered through. I’m really happy with my PR, and I’ll be even happier if I PR again in the finals.”
Amy Weissenbach – Girls’ 800m
“It was harder than the first round . There was definitely more jostling, and I got stuck in a little awkward spot before I stepped out and broke away. I saw the girl from Britain and I saw I would qualify. In finals, I’ll go crazy and let all the energy go.”
Robin Reynolds – Girls’ 400m
“I had tightened up and I couldn’t hold on. My form broke down and I didn’t have it. I just didn’t have the good finish I normally do. There is no reason why, I just didn’t execute as good as I should have.”
Bealoved Brown – Girls’ 200m
“I wanted to see what the other girls were looking like. It’s a deep curve, and I had to lean a lot. I know in semis I’ll have to work harder.”
Madie Meyers – Girls’ Steeplechase
“It was hard, but I knew if I was going to make it to finals I didn’t need to give it everything. I knew I was in the top four, so I just held my spot. If this was the final, I would have gone all out.”
Aldrich Bailey – Boys’ 200m
“I just got two more rounds, I’m a little relieved. I just came off the turn and did what I had to do.”
Ronald Darby – Boys’ 200m
“I just wanted to get out good and hold it on the homestretch. I want a medal really bad, I just have to have fun and do my thing.”
About USA Track & Field
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track & field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, the World's #1 Track & Field Team, the most-watched events at the Olympics, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport, and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States: www.usatf.org.
DAY TWO
Six medals won on day two of World Youth Champs